I have a gas fireplace problem. (1 Viewer)

[IC FBGCav]

I have not used the fireplace in years. It is basically a back up in case the electric goes out. Well have a big storm in Raleigh, looks like now we will be fine power wise. But the fireplace will not come on, not even a hiss of gas. The tank is a large one, the gauge has it a 60% but the gas is not getting to fireplace. It has not been used in years, I have tried to "drain the line of air" but the gas is not going from the tank to the place. You can see outside how to open the tank, it screws out. Inside everything is being done right, I just don't even get an air hiss let propane. Nothing getting to the house but everything is open. I have bled the line, done everything........just have no other ideas why it does not work. (FYI I have lit the fireplace many times, so I know how to work it inside).

 

[IC FBGCav]

Also the tank reads at 60 %. wife said it was always open and 4 hours before I got home she checked I checked it again today and still at 60%. So it is not leaking, just not getting to the fireplace.

 

[belljr]

mine is natural gas, but you sure the tank meter isnt broke

 

[belljr]

inside valve?

 

[IC FBGCav]

inside valve?

Outside is showing the tank at 60% and it is a big tank. Inside there is a value, it we had it on. I lived in this house since 1999, and started the fire place a dozen times at least. In the past when you light the pilot there has always been a hiss, not a sound what so ever this time. My wife who is extremely competent tried first before I got home. I double checked everything she did and she did everything right. It is just not getting to the fireplace. We only use that as a back up heat source and it looks like it will not be needed. Thanks goodness. I also have a generator in my shed that I have not had to use in the 10+ years since it was purchased. I am sure it will be useless too when I finally will need it.

 

[satch]

Last time you used the fireplace I assume you closed the inside shutoff valve when finished using it? I'm thinking maybe since it hasn't been used in a while that valve is stuck/broken. The handle turning doesn't necessarily mean the valve is functioning properly. I had this happen to an outside water spigot recently. Replaced valve.

 

[IC FBGCav]

Last time you used the fireplace I assume you closed the inside shutoff valve when finished using it? I'm thinking maybe since it hasn't been used in a while that valve is stuck/broken. The handle turning doesn't necessarily mean the valve is functioning properly. I had this happen to an outside water spigot recently. Replaced valve.

Correct, never leave the pilot light on.

At the tank outside it is like spigot, and you can tell open from closed. It might be the inside or outside value but if it is, there is not fix that will help soon.

I will tinker with the inside valve. We just turned that to the on and left it there. Maybe the ball inside got stuck......hopefully. Thanks.

 

[satch]

Last time you used the fireplace I assume you closed the inside shutoff valve when finished using it? I'm thinking maybe since it hasn't been used in a while that valve is stuck/broken. The handle turning doesn't necessarily mean the valve is functioning properly. I had this happen to an outside water spigot recently. Replaced valve.

Correct, never leave the pilot light on. At the tank outside it is like spigot, and you can tell open from closed. It might be the inside or outside value but if it is, there is not fix that will help soon.

I believe you said the outside tank valve is always open? If so, the outside valve is likely not the problem. If anything, it may be stuck in the open position which would not restrict gas flow. Another possibility is that the gas line itself has a blockage between the inside valve and the line outlet to the pilot. Cobwebs, spiders, etc?

 

[satch]

Last time you used the fireplace I assume you closed the inside shutoff valve when finished using it? I'm thinking maybe since it hasn't been used in a while that valve is stuck/broken. The handle turning doesn't necessarily mean the valve is functioning properly. I had this happen to an outside water spigot recently. Replaced valve.

Correct, never leave the pilot light on. At the tank outside it is like spigot, and you can tell open from closed. It might be the inside or outside value but if it is, there is not fix that will help soon.

I will tinker with the inside valve. We just turned that to the on and left it there. Maybe the ball inside got stuck......hopefully. Thanks.

Don't forget to shut off the tank valve while you're tinkering inside. Easy to forget the obvious sometimes, especially if you're in a hurry. If something breaks while you're tinkering you could have a major gas leak inside. Might not hiss either. I'm sure you know this, just a friendly reminder.

 

[baaloc1968]

Last time you used the fireplace I assume you closed the inside shutoff valve when finished using it? I'm thinking maybe since it hasn't been used in a while that valve is stuck/broken. The handle turning doesn't necessarily mean the valve is functioning properly. I had this happen to an outside water spigot recently. Replaced valve.

Correct, never leave the pilot light on. At the tank outside it is like spigot, and you can tell open from closed. It might be the inside or outside value but if it is, there is not fix that will help soon.

I believe you said the outside tank valve is always open? If so, the outside valve is likely not the problem. If anything, it may be stuck in the open position which would not restrict gas flow. Another possibility is that the gas line itself has a blockage between the inside valve and the line outlet to the pilot. Cobwebs, spiders, etc?

I had someone check our natural gas fireplace because it wasn't lighting. At the time, the house was 15 years old. We had owned it for 5 years and had never used the fireplace. Guy came out and we verified the steps we had taken were correct. He followed the same steps, but waited for 5 minutes or so after turning on the gas saying that when not used for a period of time, it takes a while for the gas to get through the line. He also said that the problem is usually spiders or spider webs blocking the line.

 

[IC FBGCav]

Last time you used the fireplace I assume you closed the inside shutoff valve when finished using it? I'm thinking maybe since it hasn't been used in a while that valve is stuck/broken. The handle turning doesn't necessarily mean the valve is functioning properly. I had this happen to an outside water spigot recently. Replaced valve.

Correct, never leave the pilot light on. At the tank outside it is like spigot, and you can tell open from closed. It might be the inside or outside value but if it is, there is not fix that will help soon.

I believe you said the outside tank valve is always open? If so, the outside valve is likely not the problem. If anything, it may be stuck in the open position which would not restrict gas flow. Another possibility is that the gas line itself has a blockage between the inside valve and the line outlet to the pilot. Cobwebs, spiders, etc?

I had someone check our natural gas fireplace because it wasn't lighting. At the time, the house was 15 years old. We had owned it for 5 years and had never used the fireplace. Guy came out and we verified the steps we had taken were correct. He followed the same steps, but waited for 5 minutes or so after turning on the gas saying that when not used for a period of time, it takes a while for the gas to get through the line. He also said that the problem is usually spiders or spider webs blocking the line.

Bled the line. Wife blew into the pilot (hoping she could do a better job at that then me). Thanks to you and satch for the effort, still not up.

 

[satch]

Are you able to run a coat hanger or something into the line?

 

[IC FBGCav]

Are you able to run a coat hanger or something into the line?

No did not do that, but will later, thanks!

 

[satch]

Are you able to run a coat hanger or something into the line?

No did not do that, but will later, thanks!

No problem. If you can run something into the line past the open inside valve you can eliminate the inside valve as the culprit, as well as clear any possible blockage up to that point. Of course, you could also be pushing any blockage further back into the line, but you wouldn't be any worse off than you are now. Good luck.

 

[SWC]

listen i am being serious i like to do a lot of projects and work on stuff but anything that can kill me i do not work on so no electric or gas call a pro and swallow the bill it is better than having something go wrong take that to the bank brohan and even if you get it work that does not mean it is working right and you might just be making a problem later on just saying be safe brochacho

 

[Johnny Rock]

I had the same thing happen before and the gauge was bad so the tank was empty but showed 50%. Do you use the gas for anything else?

Try tapping the tank moving up and down the tank side to listen for different sounds. You should be able to tell if there's gas in there.

Another thing to try is pouring water over the outside of the tank. The temperature difference should delineate a line on the outside where you can tell how full the tank is.

I wouldn't stick anything in the line or mess with the connections. My guess is the gauge is bad and your tank is empty. The gas should've still been full right up to the fireplace valve.

 

[avoiding injuries]

Different problem:

I haven't used my gas fireplace in a couple of years. I lit the pilot and started the fireplace about 30 minutes ago. There is a pretty decent, but not great sized fire going. I have the blower on, but there is a limited amount of heat coming out. I can feel it about 4-5 feet away from the fireplace and the glass is very hot to the touch. Beyond that, there is very little effect.

Any thoughts, ideas or tips?

 

[kutta]

Different problem:

I haven't used my gas fireplace in a couple of years. I lit the pilot and started the fireplace about 30 minutes ago. There is a pretty decent, but not great sized fire going. I have the blower on, but there is a limited amount of heat coming out. I can feel it about 4-5 feet away from the fireplace and the glass is very hot to the touch. Beyond that, there is very little effect.

Any thoughts, ideas or tips?

We have a gas firepit that had a low flame and then a couple days later it just stopped working. We traced the problem to a spider web in the gas line. It was actually right where the line connected to the pit. Really thick web . It was weird. We cleaned that out and it worked great.